Smartphone sales are at their lowest in ten years. According to Canalys’ estimates, there will be an 11% drop in 2022 compared to 2021, with 1.2 billion fewer units sold. Focusing on last year’s last quarter, the tally says -17%. With less money to spend in the face of soaring commodity prices, recession gripping the western world, interest rate hikes curbing spending and Covid outbreaks still widespread in China, fewer smartphones are being bought worldwide than in the past.

The general decline, however, remains the same strategies of manufacturers, who are ready to launch many new top-of-the-range devices in the coming weeks. From Samsung to OnePlus and Oppo, within the next month, we will see some of the most anticipated smartphones of 2023. Among the negative surprises for consumers, because of the above, there will almost certainly be a general increase in the cost of devices.

Companies spend more to make phones, which come at a higher price. However, an all too simple equation clashes with the necessary caution of customers, who are forced or persuaded to keep their smartphone for a more extended period than in the past.

Samsung Galaxy S23

As is customary, the first to unveil mobile news will be Samsung, which has set the Galaxy Unpacked event for 1 February. On the plate is Galaxy S23, the latest heir to the best-selling high-end Android. While we wait to see them, we can imagine what they will look like, knowing that the range confirms Samsung Galaxy S23 as the base model, 23+ as the intermediate model and S23 Ultra as the highest-rated and S-Pen-equipped version after the Note series was discontinued.

All three should feature a similar design, with a mix of glass and aluminium and four available colours: Cotton Flower, Botanic Black, Phantom Black and Mystic Lilac. While the dimensions are expected to vary by a few millimetres, the difference in weight will be sharper, going from around 170 grams of the Galaxy S23 to 233 grams of the Ultra.

The base model will have a 6.1-inch display, the middle model will go up to 6.6 inches, and the largest will feature a 6.8-inch screen. In all cases, the integrated panel will be a Dynamic Amoled 2X, with a refresh rate of 120 Hz and a central hole at the top to insert the front camera. The new Qualcomm 3D Sonic will be the fingerprint reader, still inserted under the display but with a much more generous surface than the current one to facilitate unlocking the phone.

Goodbye then to the Exynos processor, considered a little less powerful and prone to overheating. It remains to be seen whether Samsung wants to continue to offer versions with 8GB of Ram and 128GB of storage, choices that could be more justifiable with smartphone prices. Apparently, there would also be news for the processor because, unlike in the past, the version with the Qualcomm Snapdragon Gen 2 SoC should also arrive in Europe.

Impressive figures and sensors should make the photo compartment stand out. Many insiders are betting on a 200-megapixel sensor integrated into the Galaxy S23 Ultra, thanks to the Isocell HP2 sensor that Samsung recently presented. Beyond numbers that are good mainly for marketing, the sensor helps reduce overexposure, improve colour reproduction in very bright environments, and focus faster when there is little light.

Let us hope that the predictions do not come true regarding the battery, as there is talk of 25W fast charging for the Galaxy S23 and 45W for the other two models. While acceptable in an absolute sense, if confirmed, they would mark the distance between Samsung and Chinese manufacturers far ahead in developing solutions for charging smartphones in a short time.

It is more difficult to make predictions on costs because, besides not knowing them officially, each market has variables that influence and determine the final price. Overall, however, an increase is expected on all models, with prices starting at €949/989 for the Galaxy S23, €1199/1249 for the Galaxy S23+ and €1399/1449 for the Galaxy S23 Ultra.

OnePlus 11

Also official is the arrival date of the OnePlus 11, already unveiled in China and presented to the rest of the world on 7 February. The main difference with the past can already be guessed from the name because there will be no Pro version this time. Company president Li Jie confirmed that there would only be one flagship smartphone this year (last year OnePlus launched the 10T version but not the OnePlus 10).

However, the smartphone will not be the only new product, as the company passed under Oppo’s control is set to launch the Buds Pro 2 earphones and a brand new mechanical keyboard compatible with both Windows and Mac (there is a button to switch between the two operating systems instantly).

According to rumours, the European version of the OnePlus 11 will have an identical spec sheet to the Chinese one, so we already know everything about the smartphone. The latest processor is Qualcomm, with 16GB Ram (so above average) and a 5000 mAh battery with a 100W power supply in the box. The display is a 6.7-inch Amoled with LTPO 3.0 technology, refresh rate up to 120 Hz, Quad HD+ resolution and a fingerprint sensor integrated under the display.

The camera remains the device’s highlight thanks to OnePlus’ partnership with Hasselblad. On the back side, it mounts Sony sensors: a 50MP primary camera with OIS, 48MP ultra-wide angle and 32MP tele. In front, the selfie camera will have a 16MP sensor.

The OnePlus 11 was an immediate success in China, with Li Jie speaking of ‘record pre-sales. Although it is always tricky to get precise numbers from the Chinese market, the premise bodes well for the brand, which from this year will guarantee 4 OS updates and 5 years of security patches for its top-of-the-range models.

OPPO Find X6

In a few weeks, it will be Oppo’s turn with the Find X6 series. The focus is on the Pro model, which according to a leaked image on GizmoChina, will sport a revamped design. Standing out is the generous circular rear camera module, which integrates three lenses and an LED flash. Also present are the Hasselblad logo, with which Oppo signed a three-year agreement last February after OnePlus, and the MariSilicon logo, the in-house developed image processing processor now in its second generation. We can also see from the image that the Oppo Find X6 Pro is supposed to be made of two different materials, with the upper part of the body made of ceramic and the lower part possibly leather (although this difference could be reserved for a special version of the phone).

There is no doubt which processor Oppo has chosen because, as with all top-of-the-range Android phones, there will be Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. The camera will consist of a Sony main lens, an ultrawide lens and a telephoto lens, while the display should have a diagonal of 6.7 inches or 6.8 inches and a central hole for the front camera. The battery should have a capacity of 5000 mAh, with support for 100W fast charging. No information has filtered through on pricing, although considering the launch of the previous generation\ we could expect a cost of around €1100-1200.